Duterte Drops Bid to Disqualify ICC Judges

(MENAFN) Former Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte has opted not to pursue a renewed effort to exclude two judges from the International Criminal Court (ICC) proceedings concerning alleged crimes against humanity, as reported by a news agency on Sunday.

This decision was confirmed by his legal counsel, Nicholas Kaufman.

According to Kaufman, Duterte has decided not to contest a previous ruling by the ICC, which rejected accusations that Judges Reine Alapini-Gansou and Maria del Socorro Flores Liera held prejudiced views.

The court turned down the appeal to remove the judges on July 3, maintaining their roles in the ongoing investigation based in The Hague, Netherlands.

Duterte's defense team had argued that the judges' earlier affiliations might result in a “possible conflict of interest.”

However, Kaufman later stated, “No, I’m not going to, as I’ve said, there has been new information which has come to light. I can’t disclose that information, but it does affect whether or not I would want to seek reconsideration of the request to disqualify.”

Kaufman also rejected allegations that Duterte participated in the destruction of critical materials related to the nation’s controversial drug crackdown.

These denials come after Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla claimed that essential documents were compromised, thereby justifying the handover of jurisdiction to the ICC.

Further intensifying the case, the ICC recently submitted more evidence against Duterte.

The submission included 1,062 documented items, systematically categorized to support the prosecution’s argument.

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